COBDENISM. ri 



ceived in siicii a biassed — rather than an impar- 

 tial — spirit almost from the beginning to the 

 end, and shows such palpable ignorant dogmatism 

 as to the practical bearings of Mr. Chamberlain's 

 proposals, that no one who has really endeavoured 

 to think out what those proposals are would 

 ever dream of answering a mere parody of them. 



EEMAEKABLE COBDEN CLUB YIEWS. 



In 1888 the Cobden Club lent its name, reputa- 

 tion, and authority to the publication of a book 

 which bore the title, " The British Farmer and 

 his Competitors." We thought at the time the 

 statements in the book were remarkable. We 

 think so still. 



We dig this little volume out to-day only to 

 compare the facts of the present with the state- 

 ments, opinions, &c., of the author or Club at 

 the time v/e speak of. We do so the more 

 willingly, as, of course, nowadays everybody 

 but the Cobden Club admits that agriculture is 

 badly oif, or, as Lord Rosebery says, is "crippled." 

 The Cobden Club, however, will, vre imagine, 

 hardly care to be referred to views, not of 1843 

 or thereabouts, but even so recently as 1888; 

 and yet the public may have a little interest in 

 them, though we may at once say that thosQ 

 desiring the book under notice will find, as we 

 have found, a difhculty in getting a copy of it, 

 the Club having, it informed us, ceased to circu- 

 late it. 



We were, for instance, told (in 1888) that " it 



